Kristen sent me her finished review of my full manuscript, three days after I concluded my book cover contest. I'll be honest, her feedback wasn't at all what I expected.
You'll laugh to hear that I spent a full day convinced that I hadn't gotten my money's worth, that perhaps I had picked the wrong editor, or that she had rushed the job because she was two weeks late.
All because she had no major structural recommendations.
““This manuscript is actually in great shape. The prose is lovely and the characters are well-drawn.””
After the last two editors, who shredded my (multiple versions of) Chapter One and advised a different ending, it seemed a little suspect that Kristen wouldn't find any major issues after reading all 83,000 words. Surely, I still had major blind spots?
““The characterizations in your story are excellent, and you have a firm grasp on the viewpoint. But there are some improvements I think can be made. Many of these are minor details.””
Thankfully, some friends talked me down, and I reluctantly concluded that, perhaps after multiple revisions, beta rounds, and internal processing, this story might just well be...almost done. I had employed the lessons I learned from writing my first book, The Paper Throne. I had read dozens of articles and books on how to self-edit structure, pacing, world-building, and every aspect of storytelling I could think of.
““The quality of your characters, your prose, and your storyworld are top-notch.””
Sure, another editor might have been more critical; perhaps pushed me towards a tighter plot, or more commercial approach. But while some writers hire editors early on in the process, I'd already workshopped this story close to where I intended it to land.
Kristen had great feedback on my question as to whether the book opened in the wrong spot, and might benefit from less talking, more action:
““Your story is driven by characters and relationships, not action, so the dialogue will be what drives the plot. Some readers may want more action, but that doesn’t mean you change your story for them. They’re just not your ideal readers.””
I struggle with believing that there are ideal readers out there besides friends and family; it's easier to believe my marketing efforts will glean only echoes from the void. Easy to compare against the commercial success of other authors who write more mainstream stories with popular tropes, punchy action, and more "sellable" concepts. But I can only offer my best, and grow from there.
Kristen also countermanded Susan's recommendation that I change the ending... and this took me a while to absorb. Ultimately, I'm deciding to trust Kristen's instinct, because she read the whole story, and Susan only the beginning and synopsis. Advice is so subjective, and it's important to trust your instinct. If your art is working, quit fiddling with it and trust when it's done.
““It is very rare for me to give an author a report where every item on the Character list is checked off. Well done!””
I was happy to get good marks on the primary elements; it's harder to fix character qualities, and flawed viewpoint, and weak structure. My weak point remains trickling in just the right amount of backstory, but the two sections Kristen highlighted were known issues...and I've got a plan.
I also had a couple bad grammar habits: putting the em-dash from interrupted speech within the "" marks, instead of outside:
"This is correct"—when interrupting—"to finish a statement."
"This is wrong—" when interrupting, "—so I'll have to fix these."
I also naturally broke up dialogue from the same speaker if they, in my view, changed topics. But doing so without a dialogue tag makes the reader think the speaker has changed. A small error, but a tricky one to catch, since it feels unnatural for me to write a giant dialogue paragraph. Seeing as dialogue is on every page… I’ll go and get my reading glasses. This fix is going to take a while.
““This really is a fabulous story and I believe it will have a great impact on readers’ hearts and minds. Well done!””
Overall, I was very grateful for Kristen's methodical review. She provided an 11-page editorial letter covering 10 aspects of writing, with detailed checklists for each and examples of areas I needed to revise. I can use this matrix for all future books. And the moral? Sometimes, Dear Perfectionist, you are really, very nearly there.
